Not applicable.
Not applicable.
This invention relates to the manufacture of containers such aerosol cans, paint cans and the like, and more particularly, to a reject apparatus for selectively discarding unacceptable can bodies after they have been routed through a slitter mechanism.
In the manufacture of cans, a rectangular sheet of steel is sized so a plurality of can bodies can be made from the sheet. In the manufacturing process, the sheet may be first run through a printing press by which a product label and other information is printed on one side of the sheet. The number of labels printed on the sheet corresponds to the number of can bodies which are formed from the sheet. After printing, the sheet is run through a slitter mechanism which first slits the sheet along one of its axes (its longitudinal axis, for example), and then along another axis (for example, crosswise along the orthogonal axis of the sheet). The resulting blanks are then carried to a welding machine where the plates are welded into cylinders used to form can bodies. Because of defects in a sheet, poor printing results, etc., it may be necessary to reject certain portions of the sheet from which can bodies would otherwise be formed.
A reject mechanism used to perform this function must solve a number of problems. For example, since the slitter mechanism is adjustable to cut sheets of different sizes, the reject mechanism must be similarly adjustable. In addition, the areas on the sheets where defects occur or where there is bad printing may vary from sheet to sheet. The reject apparatus must therefore be selectably controllable to accurately remove only the unwanted segments from each sheet, and it must be capable of doing so without effecting the high throughput capacity of the slitter apparatus.
Among the several objects of the present invention may be noted the provision of a reject mechanism for use with a slitter apparatus to selectively remove from a stream of sheet segments produced by the slitter only those segments which are not to be used to form can bodies, and to not otherwise interfere with the movement of acceptable sheet segments from the slitter;
the provision of such a reject mechanism by which either the same segments or different segments from different sheets can be removed from the flow of segments;
the provision of such a reject mechanism whose operation does not effect the throughput rate of the slitter;
the provision of such a reject mechanism which is readily adjusted during changeovers to accommodate different size sheets passing through the slitter;
the provision of such a reject mechanism sized to fit between one end of a slitter apparatus and a collection bin in which acceptable sheet segments are collected for transfer to can forming equipment;
the provision of such a reject mechanism to include a plurality of fingers spaced across an edge of a slitter table, the fingers being reciprocally movable fingers each of which is selectively activated to move into the path of an unwanted sheet segment to deflect the segment into a reject bin or the like, the fingers moving sufficiently quickly as to move out of the path of the next acceptable sheet segment;
the provision of such a reject mechanism to be operable by the person operating the slitter; and,
the provision of such a reject mechanism which is easily installed and readily removed from the slitter.
In accordance with the invention, generally stated, a reject mechanism is for use with a slitter which slits a printed metal blank into segments subsequently used to form cans for holding and dispensing fluid commodities. The mechanism is mounted at the outlet of the slitter to deflect rejected segments from a collection area to which acceptable segments are delivered for further use in can manufacture. The mechanism comprises a series of pneumatically actuated fingers normally positioned beneath a path over which the segments pass from the slitter to the collection area. However, when a reject segment approaches the mechanism, a piston is activated to elevate the fingers into the path of the segment to deflect the segment off its path into a second collection area in which rejected segments are collected. The fingers are then retracted so that succeeding acceptable segments pass freely over the path. Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.